Dark Days
by Ada C. Eliana
Summary: With the anniversary of his parents' death around the corner, Robin feels himself slumping into a familiar depression, and a little recklessness to go with it... Of course, he has no idea that someone is out to kill him.
1. Chapter 1

**A/N:** A new mini-story to pass the time. I've gotten writer's block for my other three Titans stories, so I decided it was high time to start another one!

This should take place somewhere after "Haunted" and before "The End."

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**Dark Days**

By: Sarah Shima

Part I

* * *

The invitation came two weeks before the event. Wrapped in an expensive envelope and sealed professionally, it had been stuffed haphazardly in the Titans' post office box in Jump City along with reams of fan mail and death threats. While the Titans' P.O. box number was supposed to be classified, there always seemed to be a leak and they would suddenly find themselves swimming in letter after letter.

Beast Boy, having once written a letter to Robin's first group of Titans, felt it his duty to open and read all of the mail, a way of making up for the shame of his own actions. He also responded to the letters from young meta-humans who felt out of place in life.

Beast Boy generally liked reading fan mail, especially fan mail directed at him. What he really could not stand was Robin fan mail, which just got on his nerves.

So when Beast Boy tossed a week's worth of mail on the floor of the living room and began sorting through it, he piled anything labeled to Robin in a large stack and left it for last.

After he had gone through the various letters that either praised, or criticized the team and individuals, he moved his attention to Robin's mail. The first five letters he opened were all from girls who wanted to know whether he was single, and if he would date them. The next bunch were death threats from various enemies and psychos (Robin always seemed to get the most of those). After rifling through the rest of the mail, Beast Boy's fingers came to rest upon the dignified envelope. Curious, he read the outside. It was addressed simply to Robin, and the return address was that of City Hall. "Maybe Robin has a parking violation," Beast Boy chuckled, picturing a police office sticking a ticket on the R-Cycle for being parked in a fire lane.

He turned one of his fingers into a claw and slid it underneath the envelope, effectively ripping it open. Beast Boy then slid the letter out and unfolded it. He quirked up one eyebrow as he read the contents.

"Hey Robin!" he called through the Tower as he started down the hall towards the evidence room. "Robin!" he yelled. As he walked through the Tower, various Titans popped their heads out of their rooms, curious. Starfire, Raven, and Cyborg all ended up behind Beast Boy as he looked for Robin.

"I believe he is in the gym, and asked to not be disturbed under any circumstances," Starfire informed. "Why is it that you seek for Robin? Is it an emergency?"

"This," Beast Boy said, holding the envelope up tantalizingly in front of them. "Betcha want to know what's inside, right. Well too bad! Robin's eyes only amigos; that's the way it goes."

"Why, what is it?" Raven asked. Beast Boy only shook his head in response, and ended up at the door to the gym.

He pushed the release, and the door slid open to reveal Robin in exercise clothes, in mid-air, performing a back-flip across a pair of high bars. He caught the bar and turned his attention to the door as his teammates crowded in. Releasing his hold, he flipped once on his way down and then landed cleanly on his feet.

"What's going on?" Robin asked, reaching for a towel to wipe the sweat off of his face.

"Dude, where did those come from?" Cyborg asked, staring at the high bars, and the trapeze swings hanging from the ceiling. He noticed that the normal equipment had been pushed into one corner.

"I take them out sometimes to practice, why?" Robin said calmly.

"You know, we have plenty of room to set this stuff up permanently," Cyborg said, wondering why he would hide his practice equipment. Although, Cyborg was quite curious about Robin's selections, especially the trapeze set. Last time he checked, those were not standard martial arts training equipment.

Robin only shrugged in response, peeved that he had been interrupted. He set aside specific times to work out and not be disturbed. And that was when he pulled out his aerialist equipment – or rather, the computer system he installed in the gym set it up for him. Whatever it was that made them walk in now had better be important.

"What do you need?" he asked impatiently.

"This came for you," Beast Boy said quickly, handing the letter to Robin.

"A letter?" Robin asked. What could be so important about a letter? Robin unfolded the expensive paper quickly, noted the Jump City seal at the top, and then scanned over it.

"So, what does it say?" Cyborg asked.

Robin cleared his throat and read aloud:

_To Robin,_

_In two weeks, Jump City will be playing host to an international_

_gymnastics competition. This is a great honor to the city as_

_many other cities and countries were vying for it. As such,_

_I would like to personally ask you to perform a short_

_acrobatic routine on equipment of your choice to open the _

_competition and to showcase just what Jump City has to offer._

_I hope that you will strongly consider this offer, and I _

_assure you that security will be of the highest caliber for the event._

_Please respond at your convenience._

_Sincerely,_

_John Walsh _

_Jump City Mayor_

"They want you to perform?" Cyborg asked, leaning over Robin's shoulder and reading it just to be sure he had heard correctly.

"Sounds that way," Robin said, rereading the letter. For a moment his mind flashed over a series of his fondest memories. The days when he had been an aerialist in a circus act with his parents. They were called "The Flying Grayson's" and were the headliners for Haly's Circus. They traveled all over America and Europe, performing at packed fairgrounds. The lights and audiences always energized him, and Robin had to admit, he had loved the attention. He could only imagine what kind of energy there would be in a packed stadium…

Robin stopped himself from considering it. That was a different life, and a different time. Richard Grayson, the youngest person to ever perform the quadruple back-flip would have been able to awe audiences his whole life. However, the murder of his parents, becoming the ward of billionaire playboy Bruce Wayne, aka Batman, and the subsequent creation of his superhero life had ended any chance of that. When he started school in Gotham, Bruce had absolutely forbade him from showing off at all. Robin on the other hand was a different story. He could perform any feat he wanted when behind the mask.

Robin shook his head; that would be too dangerous, putting himself in a crowded stadium. No matter how good the security was, there was always a chance that someone would try and seek their revenge on him then and there.

"Wonderful!" Starfire exclaimed, pulling Robin out of his musings. She had seen some of his acrobatic moves during battles, and was always awed and fascinated by them. He was so talented. "Will you perform Robin?" she asked.

"Of course he won't," Raven responded curtly. Starfire turned to Raven with a questioning glance. "It's too risky. Robin has a lot of enemies, and he should not appear in public like that, it would be dangerous."

Robin frowned. Even though he had thought the same things only moments ago, they sounded different coming from Raven. While he knew she was just trying to look out for him, he silently wondered when she had become his surrogate Batman.

"But…" Starfire began. She stopped when she noticed Raven staring oddly at Robin. Starfire turned her gaze to him as well. He had walked away from the group and was punching a code into the computer system inside the gym. Machines sprang to life and moved his equipment off to the side where it could barely be seen. Wordlessly, he folded the letter back up and stuck it in the envelope, and then turned and walked away.

* * *

Robin headed back to his room, his head hung in annoyance and aggravation. As the door slid firmly shut behind him, he dropped down onto the bed. Staring up at the ceiling, he absentmindedly peeled the mask off of his face and let it drop to the floor.

He hated that he had to wear the mask around his teammates, his friends. He hated that he had to hide his identity from them, even to the point of practicing his aerials in secret. (With the group of them, how long would it be before one of them put the pieces together and figured out his identity?) But he had to. There was no guarantee that the Titans would all stay in the team/loyal – Terra was a good example of that – and he was not only protecting himself, but Bruce as well.

Sure the original Titans, Donna Troy/Wonder Girl, Wally West/Kid Flash, Roy Harper/Speedy, and Garth/Aqualad knew his real identity, but they also knew Superman's identity. And really, if someone's identity was to be revealed then Clark Kent would have far more to lose. Bruce did such a good job of keeping everyone at arm's length that an enemy would be hard-pressed to find someone to use against him.

No, that was not fair. Bruce did care about people, in his own way – a weird way, but that was Bruce for you.

Robin – no, the mask was off – Dick was just in a bad mood, and why shouldn't he be? It was that time of the year again after all: the anniversary of his parents' murder.

Eleven years.

God, had it really been that long? It seemed like only yesterday he was watching them fall from the trapeze rigging, seeing his mother's dead eyes staring back up at him. He just wanted to throw himself down there to join them. But instead he was hauled off to the Juvenile Detention Center – there were no open foster homes he could go to. And after that, it was off to Wayne Manor, to track down his parents' killer, and then to become Robin.

Everything that had happened to him in the last eleven years made circus life look tame in comparison.

He sighed aloud. Two weeks until the anniversary, and everyday was pulling him further down into his depression. God knew he was allowed to wallow for a while; the death of Bruce's parents basically gave him a free pass for mood swings for the rest of his life. While at the Manor, Alfred and Bruce knew to tiptoe around him for the weeks around that day, but here… The Titans would have no idea what was wrong with him. And then they would push for answers, and…

He cut his thoughts off, there was no sense in wondering about it now; he would deal with them when the time came to deal with them. He had resigned himself to sticking it out as best as possible, when his eyes suddenly spotted the envelope again.

He grabbed it without sitting up and read it over again. He smiled as he pictured himself accepting. It would certainly piss Bruce off. Batman and Robin were not even allowed to leave the cave until well after dark. Robin had broken that rule when he came to Jump City, being a different type of place; vigilante presence was needed in the daytime hours as well as at night.

He laid on the bed for a while longer, forcing himself into a sort of meditation so he would not think about anything. However, his reverie was broken by a voice he was usually glad to hear – except for today.

"Robin!" Starfire called through the metal door. "It is time for dinner!"

"Thanks Star, but just save some for me, okay? I'll be down in a little while!" he called through the closed door to her. She seemed to pause uncertainly, and then he heard her footsteps heading back to the kitchen.

He could not stand to be around people now. That's right; his 'dark days' had begun in earnest.

* * *

Across the city, in a dimly lit office, two men sat across from each other. One, his back to the windows; was completely in shadow, while the other was illuminated by a small tableside lamp. "Has he received the letter?" the man in shadow inquired, staring at his employee.

"Yes," the man responded curtly with a nod of his head.

"Good, now all he has to do is accept the offer," the boss said, a smile etched on his face that revealed crooked teeth.

"Are you sure he will, sir?" the employee asked, glancing quizzically at him.

"Of course he will. Just wait and see. Then we will have him exactly where we want him.

"I'm going straight to the top in Jump City, and no little bird is going to stand in my way. He'll be eliminated, permanently."

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**A/N:** Yeah, me and my weird continuity are taking over. Forget anything the series has shown you about Aqualad and Speedy, really, it'll just make it easier - but they won't even be in the story, so w/e.

Anyhow, I hoped you all enjoyed the first chapter, and I would love to know what you thought!

_Sarah Shima_


	2. Murder for Money

**A/N: I got sick of Slade again, so I'm back on this fic. Actually, I wanted to update some of the more outdated stories to bring them back into the current fold, and I do like this one. I got some great reviews off the first chapter, and I thank all of you who contributed. Hopefully I'll have some return readers, despite the long absence from this story.**

**In this chapter, Robin might seem a little off-his-rocker, but ever have one of those days where you just feel like punching your hand through the wall - or someone's face? Multiply that times 10 and you'll see how he feels. **

**Anyway, let's get on with this. Please read and review.**

**Disclaimer: I only own this story, nothing more, nothing less.

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**

Dark Days

By: Sarah Shima

Chapter 2: Murder for Money

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Danny McManohan, the third boss in the family crime syndicate had decided to make a change.

When his grandfather Daffyd arrived in America from Ireland, he moved to Gotham. The city reeked with crime and disuse, and Daffyd liked it that way. Working his way up in a small Irish mob, he learned the all he could, including that it was not run as well as it could. So Daffyd killed the boss, turning it into the McManohan mob, his very own 'family business.'

Under Daffyd's leadership, the syndicate expanded, and enjoyed a lucrative business. By taking control of the docks, the McManohan's forced low wages, and kept their employees in fear of death. As labor laws went into effect and times changed, the mob generally found themselves operating in illegal drug dealing instead.

When Daffyd passed it on to his son, Patrick, the syndicate owned the East Side, and enjoyed free reign and immunity wherever they went. By the time Danny became mob boss, Batman started cleaning up Gotham. The McManohan's were careful to avoid working with some of Gotham's more flamboyant criminals – Joker, the Riddler, etc, since they always seemed to be getting caught by the winged rat.

However, Batman began breaking up the local mobs, destroying their power and getting them jailed. Danny had come close to the Bat on one too many occasions. He always managed to evade capture himself, and easily destroyed evidence of his crimes, putting the blame on various cousins instead. The real insult came when Danny, and his best bodyguards were all taken out by Batman's brat sidekick – Robin. Danny managed to escape before the cops arrived, but he hated that kid ever since.

So, after watching his grandfather's legacy crumble almost completely, Danny made a difficult decision. He and the mobsters moved their syndicate from Gotham City to Jump City. Life was good there for a while, until someone erected a building in the shape of a giant T and that vigilante brat, Robin, started showing up, busting up his drug deals and causing trouble for him all around.

It was time to get rid of that kid. And he would do it in a way that was public, in a way that warned the other vigilantes about crossing him. He was actually looking forward to this. All he needed was for the bird to take the bait, and then he would take him out.

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The first few incidents took place the day after the letter arrived. When Starfire realized Robin never left his room to get dinner the night before, she began to worry. Compounded with his absence at breakfast and lunch, the alien became quite concerned. She knocked insistently on his door, requesting to know if he was all right. After too much silence, she began shouting and pounding louder. Finally the door slid open, and an enraged Robin yelled at her to leave him alone and go bother someone else. So Raven spent the rest of the day awkwardly comforting Starfire.

Robin appeared in the Main Room at dinner time and apologized to Starfire. After that, he made a conscious effort to remain in the Main Room. However, Robin was distracted, and lost in his thoughts.

A bank robbery caught the Titans' attention in the evening. As usual, they departed from the Tower immediately to stop the crime in progress.

* * *

A half hour before the establishment was to close, a man dressed in typical robbery garb – black clothes and ski mask – had entered with a .45 semi-automatic pistol. When he announced his plans of robbery to the occupants of the bank the customers had screamed in fright, dropping to their knees. The robber ordered the teller to fill bags with all of the money there, and he had complied. The man had his money, and his path out was clear. The only problem was that he needed an insurance policy. So he grabbed one of the customers – a woman with dark hair and blue eyes, and held her at gunpoint.

Just as he stepped out of the door, he fired a single shot into the woman's head, allowing her body to drop. Civilians stood stunned at the sudden murder, and that gave him the distraction he needed to make his getaway.

Or so he thought.

A high tensile line wrapped around the arm holding the stolen cash. On the other end of the line, Robin jerked it from his perch on the ledge of the building next door, pulling the man face-first into the sidewalk. The man leapt to his feet, aiming his gun at the impetuous young vigilante as Robin somersaulted to the ground before him. Robin showed no regard for the danger that could be imposed by a gun, and began savagely attacking the man. Fists and feet flew, and as Robin knocked the man to the pavement, he fumbled with the safety on his gun and opened fire.

Robin dodged the first two, laughing just to incur the man's anger, but the third bullet grazed Robin's arm, releasing quite a bit of blood with it. Starfire screamed from behind him as she approached the scene. Robin ignored the injury and nearly snapped the man's wrist as he wrenched the gun from him.

"You killed that woman!" Robin screamed as he smashed his bo staff into the man's chest. "And for what? For money! Is money worth more than her life! You bastard!" He hit the man with his staff again and again, reducing him to a quivering mass on the pavement. But still Robin would not stop. All of the anger he still held inside about his parent's murder was suddenly being released upon this murdering bank robber.

"Robin! Robin, stop!" Starfire shouted, the crowd around them growing larger. Uncertain as to what to do, Starfire lunged forward and grabbed Robin, one arm around his shoulders, the other holding his right arm against his torso. She felt his body shaking, but with rage or something else she could not discern.

The police raced in to arrest the bank robber, regarding Robin with concern. As they dragged the man away, Robin muscles finally loosened, and his staff clattered to the ground. The other Titans, who had been in the bank and had not realized that Robin found the robber, watched wordlessly as Starfire turned Robin's trembling form to her and enveloped him in her arms. Robin looked at the woman's dead form, her blue eyes open and staring at him. He squeezed his own eyes shut as the memory of his mother's dead expression entered his mind, and pressed himself closer against Star.

After the crowds had dissipated, Robin regained his composure and pulled away from the alien. "Sorry," he muttered, retrieving his bo staff.

"Robin, your arm!" Beast Boy shouted, noticing that crimson blood had trailed all the way down his left arm. He reached out for Robin on impulse, but Robin just shrugged away from his touch.

"It's fine. I'll meet you back at the Tower," he announced, stalking away towards his R-cycle.

His teammates watched him go, dumbstruck and unsure as to what they should do.

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**Titan's Tower**

****

Raven, Beast Boy, Cyborg, and Starfire sat around in the Main Room waiting for Robin to come back. The sky outside had turned dark, rain pouring down. The great windows displayed the city in the distance; just as gloomy as their moods.

"He completely lost it back there," Cyborg said. "I don't get it, what's going on with him anyway."

"Something must have triggered his anger. He's only ever behaved that way twice, and both times involved Slade," Raven pointed out, leaning backwards on the couch and pulling her cape around her.

"Do you think Slade had something to do with this?" Starfire asked fearfully, sitting forward, her hands clasped. Perhaps Robin had been infected with some kind of mind-altering drug again, or maybe he had seen Slade or been reminded of Slade…?

"I don't think so," Raven responded. "I think this was about something different entirely." She remembered the look on Robin's face as he stared at that woman's corpse, and her eyes that still stared out at everyone, even when dead, and shuddered.

"So then what was his problem?" Beast Boy questioned, slamming his hands on his knees in aggravation. "He almost kills some dude, and over what? I mean that lady did get killed, and it was bad, but… Robin's seen worse stuff than that, you know? So why did he lose it tonight?"

"I think these are all questions we're just gonna have to sit on for now, and ask him," Cyborg sighed. " Maybe he's in some sort of trouble or something, who knows? Something has been wrong with him for a few days now, we just don't know what. There ain't much we can do until we talk to Rob ourselves and find out what's going on."

"Yeah well where is he? It's been an hour since he left and he hasn't made it back yet," Raven said, annoyed.

"Hopefully calming down, I hate talking to him when he's flipping out," Beast Boy said. "Maybe when he comes in he'll calmly explain everything and then be calm about being calm."

So the Titans proceeded about their usual activities: Beast Boy and Cyborg playing video games, Raven meditating, and Starfire reading a fashion magazine. However, all remained in the Main Room awaiting Robin's return.

* * *

An hour later, the Teen Titans all heard the sound of Robin's motorcycle entering the garage. And it did not take an empath to notice that he was in a bad mood. Tension built up in the Tower even before he made it over the threshold to the living areas.

He wandered into the Main Room, the sleeve of his uniform torn off and wrapped around his wound. He scowled behind the mask as he stared around at them. "Robin!" Starfire announced. The corner of his mouth twitched as he turned his attention to Starfire, remembering what happened earlier – how he had nearly broken down with her standing right there.

"Robin, come sit down, we need to talk," Raven said, switching off Cy and BB's game. For once they did not seem angry about that, just tossed the controllers and turned to face their leader.

"Well sorry Raven, but I'm not in the mood for any 'heart to hearts'," Robin responded angrily.

"We need to know what's been going on with you. Is it something from your past? The anniversary of something unpleasant?" Raven pressed, hoping to at the very least get a rise out of him; at most to receive the answers they were all waiting for.

"Raven, the way I see it, until you feel like opening up to us about yourself and every bad memory you have, I think I'll keep this to myself," he voice sounded calm, but his expression told another story entirely. He turned away from them for a moment, and said, "Anyway, sorry about losing it earlier, there's no excuse for that." With that he deliberately walked past them and into his room.

* * *

Once inside the safe confines of his four walls, Robin activated the lock on the door and ripped his mask off. Furious, he needed to release more energy and anger than the two hour long bike ride. Popping in one of his Rammstein CDs, Robin removed his cape and began an angry kata.

The more he practiced, the more violent it became, and before he knew it, he had begun to trash his own room. He ripped what little was on the wall off, broke the desk, and threw his lamp. He broke off from his kata for a moment and focused more on destroying whatever he could. Entering the closet, he yanked his Robin suits out and ended up having them strewn around the room. He kicked his closet door loose and splintered its wooden pieces. He punched the walls and slammed whatever he could get his hands on. He ripped up the loose floorboard under which he hid his Dick Grayson stuff, and yanked the boxes out; scattering their contents across the floor. He finally collided with his CD player, knocking it down and inadvertently stopping the music.

Surprised by the sudden silence, he was left leaning against the wall catching his breath, and surveying the needless damage he had wreaked. He felt small and childish as he surveyed his room. But once again he felt a familiar panic rise in his chest. The need to get out of the Tower overwhelmed him; he felt it suffocating him.

Quickly changing into some 'normal clothes' and reaffixing his mask, Robin exited the Tower through a back emergency exit, intent on running as far away from the Titans as he possibly could.

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**A/N: A little short, I know, but this story was never meant to be really long. Anyhow, how do you all like the second installment? More crazy Robin in chapter 3. Please review!**

**Thank you,**

**Sarah Shima**


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